A LIFE - GIGLI

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Gigli: A Life in Words and Music (more info)
Composed by: Ale Moller
Graeme Kay, narrator


1. 'I was born with a voice and very little else...' / Ponchielli: 'Cielo e mar' from La Gioconda - 1918 - 05:21
2. Family background - 05:19
3. Gigli's stage debut and poverty-stricken start - 06:36
4. Puccini: 'O soave fanciulla' from La Boheme - 1919 - 03:36
5. Service in the household of Countess Spannocchi - 03:18
6. Donizetti: 'Spirto gentil' from La favorita - 1918 - 04:03
7. Colonel Delfino, and Giovanni Zerri's legal agreement - 05:01
8. Cannio: O surdato 'nnammurato - 1918 - 02:26
9. A hospital visit and a scholarship - 02:17
10. Mascagni: 'Ah! ritrovarla nella sua capanna' from Lodoletta - 1918 - 03:42
11. Gigli graduates and makes his debut; he goes for the high B flat - 06:31
12. Puccini: 'E lucevan le stelle' from Tosca - 1918 - 02:55
13. Marriage, Rome and a tour to Spain - 04:12
14. Mascagni: 'Apri la tua finestra!' from Iris - 1918 - 02:35
15. A letter from Fred Gaisberg of HMV - 04:14
16. Mascagni: 'Mamma, quel vino e generoso' from Cavalleria rusticana - 1919 - 04:18
17. Gigli conquers South America, and receives an offer from the Met - 03:35
18. Metropolitan Opera debut in Mefistofele - 04:41
19. Boito: 'Giunto sul passo estremo' from Mefistofele - 1921 - 03:26

Gigli: A Life in Words and Music (more info)
Composed by: Ale Moller
Graeme Kay, narrator


1. The critics' verdict, and more performances - 04:41
2. Donizetti: 'Tombe degl'avi miei' from Lucia di Lammermoor - 1927 - 04:39
3. Gigli's fate becomes entwined with Caruso's - 07:30
4. Giordano: 'Un di all'azzurro spazio' from Andrea Chenier - 1922 - 04:25
5. Who will be Caruso's successor? - 05:48
6. Verdi: 'De'miei bollenti spiriti' from La traviata - 1928 - 04:21
7. Life forms a regular pattern, and Gigli learns to sing in foreign languages - 02:05
8. Lalo: 'Vainement, ma bien aimee' from Le Roi d'Ys - 1922 - 03:26
9. Manon at the Met - 00:56
10. Massenet: 'O dolce incanto' from Manon - 1931 - 03:36
11. Catalani's Loreley - 00:49
12. Catalani: 'Nel verde maggio' from Loreley - 1923 - 02:28
13. Summer in Italy, then back to New York and some physical training - 04:32
14. Gounod: 'Ah! ne fuis pas encore!' from Romeo et Juliette - 1923 - 02:14
15. Honorary Captain of the NYPD - 02:21
16. Meyerbeer: 'O paradiso' from L'Africaine - 1928 - 03:56
17. Flourishing finances and professional rivalries - 04:48
18. Crushing remarks; the attraction of radio - 03:40
19. Sullivan: The Lost Chord - 1931 - 04:29
20. A new decade, and the honour of playing Nemorino at the Met - 01:30
21. Donizetti: 'Quanto e bella' from L'elisir d'amore - 1925 - 02:51

Gigli: A Life in Words and Music (more info)
Composed by: Ale Moller
Graeme Kay, narrator


1. Debuts in Paris and London, and London's critical reception - 04:43
2. Flotow: 'M'appari' [Ach! So fromm] from Mata [Martha] - 1929 - 03:38
3. Crisis: the death of Gigli's mother, and tension at the Met - 03:44
4. Departure from the Met - 04:27
5. America's loss is Europe's gain - 06:40
6. Speech: Gigli in an interview at the Savoy Hotel, London - 1946 - 00:42
7. Cherished London reviews - 01:41
8. Leoncavallo: 'No, Pagliacci non son!' from Pagliacci - 1934 - 03:13
9. Recording reflects the drama - 01:07
10. Leoncavallo: 'Suvvia, cosi terribile' from Pagliacci - 1934 - 02:57
11. Touring, Gigli's working relationships, and a new turn of events - 05:59
12. De Curtis: Non ti scorder di me - 1935 - 03:17
13. Film popularity, Hitler and Goebbels, and the Caracalla tradition - 04:43
14. Puccini: 'Che gelida manina' from La Boheme - 1938 - 04:25
15. Voice expert John Steane's recommendation - 00:27
16. Puccini: ' O soave fanciulla' from La Boheme - 1938 - 03:33
17. A new recording of Tosca - 02:41
18. Puccini: 'Recondita armonia' from Tosca - 1938 - 02:48
19. Patience and hard work produce 'a perfrect set of master recordings' - 02:35
20. Puccini: 'E lucevan le stelle' from Tosca - 1938 - 02:41
21. A return to America and the Met - 04:34
22. Verdi: 'Ingemisco' from the Requiem - 1939 - 03:38
23. The recording of Madama Butterfly - 00:36
24. Puccini: Closing moments of Act I, Madama Butterfly - 1939 - 04:18

Gigli: A Life in Words and Music (more info)
Composed by: Ale Moller
Graeme Kay, narrator


1. War keeps Gigli in Italy - 02:55
2. Introductory speech to Cavalleria rusticana by Mascagni - 1940 - 00:49
3. Translation of the speech - 00:58
4. Mascagni: 'Mamma, quel vino e generoso' from Cavalleria rusticana - 1940 - 04:45
5. More role debuts, Gigli's wartime films, and Andrea Chenier - 06:40
6. Giordano: 'Un di all'azzurro spazio' from Andrea Chenier - 1941 - 05:08
7. John Steane's verdict - 00:27
8. Giordano: 'Come un bel di di maggio' from Andrea Chenier - 1941 - 03:04
9. Rome Opera House rallies wartime spirits - 01:05
10. Verdi: 'Teco io sto - Gran Dio' from Un ballo in maschera - 1943 - 01:21
11. Verdi: 'Non sai tu che se l'anima mia' from Un ballo in maschera - 1943 - 03:33
12. Verdi: 'Oh, qual soave brivido' from Un ballo in maschera - 1943 - 03:24
13. Gigli's political affiliations - 06:31
14. Verdi: 'Celeste Aida' from Aida - 1946 - 04:36
15. Postwar Italy: an HMV manager's report - 01:00
16. Verdi: 'Pui ti riveggo, mia dolce Aida' from Aida - 1946 - 03:15
17. Covent Garden with Rina, then a tour of Britian and Ireland - 06:18
18. Speech given by Gigli after a concert at the Royal Albert Hall - 1952 - 00:42
19. The final phase - and no thoughts of retirement - 02:46
20. Di Veroli: Ritorna amore - 1952 - 03:33
21. A last visit to the USA - 01:14
22. Cottrau: Santa Lucia - 1949 - 03:06
23. Gigli's death, his obituaries, and his place in the tenor lineage - 09:04
24. Meyerbeer: 'O paradiso' from L'Africaine (ending) - 1928 - 02:28

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